Winter Fairy
by Devin Trinidad
Summary: In which Lukas Bondevik meets the Queen of Arendelle after the failed coronation party.


She didn't know why she still did this—hiding and running away, that is. Coming here was dangerous, but it helped block out the painful memories of what happened hours prior. With a sigh, she took both of her gloves off of her pale hands and let the joys of being cooped up in her room for so long flow. It was still an ethereal sight, seeing the frost fly out in a millisecond. It was pure magic, having both the power to destroy or create.

That's what her power does, the Crown Princess realized. It only destroys things that were held dear to Elsa.

Tears formed in her eyes and it slowly fell down her cheeks as she realized what she had done by leaving her kingdom behind. It was the only substance that didn't freeze; she comprehended as she felt herself fingering the watery liquid that slid down her visage. It was ironic, but Elsa didn't think that much of it. Who knows what the visiting dignitaries and royals were doing at the magnificent palace. One could only hope that her sister was taking everything in stride.

The woman was so caught up in her crying that she failed to notice that someone was watching her.

He was setting up camp in the mountains when he had heard the crunching of snow and the sobs of a heartbroken maiden. Determined to stop the crying and to help the lady out in need, the man decided to come out into the open. When he had seen that the girl carelessly strip her hands free from protection, he ransacked his pack for a pair of gloves. True, they weren't as feminine or comfortable as her old ones, but it would do. He had planned to approach her, however, he had made sure that she wasn't a threat. Therefore, she had no idea that he was standing only a few feet behind her.

As the grown woman stood still to catch her breath, he finally decided to speak up.

"You need to improve on your technique." At the lady's gasp, he began to elaborate. "Letting too much magic flow can be dangerous to your health." The girl turned on her heels so fast, the man must have thought her powers originated from the wind. "That, and gloves could be quite beneficial."

"Who are you," The Crown Princess yelped as she prepared to defend herself—she completely missed the offerings of fresh gloves. Completely ignoring the pair of gloves, she cautiously backed away from the stranger. Small sparks of her power seemed to flow erratically from the girl's pale hands. Beads of sweat trickled down her neck as she tried to contain her fear and the urge to flee. If she couldn't control her powers when startled, how could she do it without hesitation?

Undeterred by her defensive posture, the man stepped forward, effectively towering over her. While he may have looked domineering and stern, Elsa was only reminded of how a father would look at a troublesome child. That didn't stop Elsa from backing away in trepidation—for the stranger's safety.

He cocked his head to the side, his dull blue eyes taking in her scared reaction and the fact that she was surreptitiously trying to run away from him. That wasn't a bad idea, he conceded ruefully. Not many people acted honorably if they were put in the same situation. In fact, he wouldn't be too surprised if someone were to take the lovely Queen of Arendelle for ransom.

He pushed those disturbing thoughts away and decided to introduce himself before she did something reckless.

"A family friend, Lukas Bondevik," he said, offering a hand. There was a mystery in his aura and a dash of humor in his eyes. Without taking his eyes off of her, he stepped forward a couple feet, effectively closing the distance between both of the Norwegians. Hesitating, Elsa moved to take out his outstretched arm when she finally wrenched it back, a look of self-loathing in her eyes.

"My name's Elsa," she squeaked out shyly. Shuddering, she held her arm against her chest, inwardly chiding her un-princess like behavior and the failure to put her gloves back on.

"The Crown Princess of Arendelle," the man affirmed. Elsa was slightly perturbed that the commoner didn't react with enthusiasm or reverence. Instead, he merely nodded like he had known who she was without her saying anything. It was like he personally knew her, but Elsa knew that it was impossible. The gates were closed for so long, that no one would have came in to see her. It was unnerving, but Elsa pushed that emotion down so she wouldn't cause a bigger mess with her powers.

"It is a pleasure to meet you," he remarked after a beat. Without any hesitation or revulsion that Elsa was expecting, he gently kissed her knuckles after pulling her arm away from her chest. To her credit, Elsa held in most of her power, but there still some snow that gathered from the hand that Lukas held gently. "You shouldn't be too shy. The people would love to interact with their future queen."

Elsa shrugged away from his grip so that the snow fell like flurries onto the ground and stared out into the distance. She could see the lights of the kingdom shine brightly in the cold night air. They were like little beacons calling out her, telling her to come home. There was a burning sensation at the back of her eyes and she gulped down bile at what she had just done.

How could she show her face there? People would no longer trust her. Her sister would fear her. It was a good thing that the gates remained closed for all those years, that way Elsa would find it easier to fade into the background.

"After what I did," she muttered mostly to herself. "I guess its safe to say that I abdicated the throne." Her eyes grew hard as she said that. The Crown Princess somewhat knew what she had done when she had escaped Arendelle, but to hear it out loud? It was like a sledgehammer slamming into the ice, rendering reality and separating fiction.

It was all true.

It had happened.

Lukas looked at the woman in curiosity. He had met and befriended many monarchs in the past. Very few people would give up power. Those who were born with great powers would hoard it with their life.

"Why would you do that? It's considered an honor to be part of the royal family." His cold stare drilled straight through Elsa's soul as she desperately tried to look away from his gaze. Something inside of his core clenched as Lukas finally reached a decision regarding the young monarch. He wasn't sure what caused his reckless reasoning, maybe it was her inexperience as a ruler or maybe he just wanted to investigate the small kingdom of Arendelle. Without any fanfare, he pointed to a spot on the lower parts of the mountain and gestured for the woman to follow him.

"What?" There was pure confusion coating the queen's words at his suggestion. While she was starting to get the feeling that she should trust him—possibly with her life—common sense told her that she should remain on guard. Just because he appeared to be compassionate didn't mean that he didn't have any motives.

"Come, you must be freezing or starving after your journey from Arendelle." While he was mildly irritated by her refusal to follow him, her tenacity made him laugh inwardly. "I set up camp just a few feet from here."

"I—no, I must be going." The Norwegian queen stepped a few paces away from her companion, fully intending on moving higher up the mountain.

"So stubborn," he incomprehensibly approved. Recklessly, he grabbed her forearm in a swift movement, forcefully taking her to his campsite. Ignoring her protests of help and her threats of getting even, Lukas Bondevik finally managed to drag her over to his tent.

* * *

The fair-haired lady chewed her bread slowly, taking in the tent and the fire that crackled with life. She was worn and tired, but she still kept her guard up. The man may have been nice and had given her food to eat and gloves to keep her hands supposedly warm, but he was still a man. From his perspective, she would have looked like a weak young girl. There was no way she was going to let him take advantage of her.

Aforementioned man was staring into the fire, his meal on his lap untouched. Even though he looked like an ordinary villager, he possessed the air of a member of the elite. On the contrary, his dull blue eyes and his rough looking clothing signified that he was meant to be insignificant. He looked like a person that no one would think twice at looking at. There was power hidden under his polite deference and Elsa was hard pressed to ask him what made him seem so unassuming, yet so…

The only was Elsa could explain it was that he was a storm just waiting to rain Hell when provoked. It was like skating on thin ice. There was always that wager on whether you were going to fall through and end up soaked or prevail in skating across the thin barrier between the dry and wet.

As a conversation starter, she decided to touch on why he was hiding away in the mountains. (She wanted to talk just to get information, not because she was tired of silence—or at least that's what she reasoned.) She placed her plate of food on the ground as she asked him, her stomach still full and reeling from the events of the coronation.

He shrugged, a careless gesture that irritated Elsa just a little. "I heard about the coronation, but I guess I came a little too late," he sighed, muttering something about a stupid Dane or something like that. "At least I got to meet the Queen of Arendelle." He grinned ruefully at her, gesturing at her bread. When there was no audible or visual response towards his effort at his lightening things, he sighed and fingered his own meal. "You should eat to retain your strength."

"I rather not," Elsa confessed as she brought her knees to her chest. "After what happened today…I'm not sure if I'm fit to be queen anymore."

"Let me guess," Lukas jested ponderously," someone forgot to bake your favorite cake."

"If it were only that simple," Elsa muttered into her skirts. "At least I would have looked like a selfish person, but as of right now they probably think of me as a traitor or a witch." Her fingers that were fisted around the fabric twisted and wrung the cloth. One could clearly see that she was wrestling severe guilt and humiliation at what she had done.

"Nevertheless, the past is in the past…you told me that you were a family friend. Have we met before?" Her eyes, sapphire and glittering, shown with an air of curiosity. She was slowly relaxing around the crackling fire and she genuinely wanted to know how he was connected to Arendelle.

"How very diplomatic of you; changing the topic of conversation is a skill very few possess." He had meant it in a joking manner, but the queen gave him a stern look that would in the future command armies. Lukas beamed unashamedly and responded with the correct answer.

"Yes." Lukas answered simply as he threw in a few more twigs into the fire. At Elsa's prodding stare, he continued. "I was there when you had your first birthday. You were a small little thing. You looked like a winter fairy, at least that's what I thought." Lukas gave her a wry smile as he began to place his food back into his provisions bag, gesturing for Elsa to do the same. He purposefully looked away from her so that she could control the blush that was on her face.

"That's interesting," Elsa muttered. "I never thought of myself as a winter fairy."

"Really," the man laughed. "With your magic and your physical traits, one would think that you would give some thought on the mystical!"

"No," Elsa muttered as she played with her hands, watching as small bits of frost fluttered onto the ground, creating a picture. It looked like a crystalline object, the design being rushed and messy, but no one could deny that it looked brilliant. "I was taught from a young age that I needed to conceal my powers." She abruptly stood from her seated position and turned away from the illustration on the ground. "Like that! I could hurt people!"

Suddenly, Elsa felt a hand enclose one of her own. Trembling, she looked into the man's dull eyes, fully surprised that they were sparkling with emotions. They bore into her younger ones and Elsa tried not to shy away in fear. There were years and years hidden behind his orbs, years that Elsa knew would be akin to centuries. This man was clearly magical…or something not human.

"You think that creating pictures on the ground are going to hurt people?" His tone was calm, yet cool. If Elsa weren't trained to hear the hidden nuances in business transactions and how to deal with diplomatic relations, she would have missed the hidden daggers of anger laced within his words. The way he held himself, angled his head toward hers so that she had no choice but to look up at him, the Crown Princess had the distinct impression that she had touched on a serious subject. She breathed a quivering sigh, knowing that she should give him time to collect himself or risk antagonizing him further.

However, she didn't count on the night's events getting to her finally. Swaying in his tight hold not of her own volition, she felt faint because this night was not supposed to have happened this way! Ideally, she would have been crowned queen, partied with the people in her usual aloof manner, and closed the gates for an immeasurable amount of years.

It should have been foolproof.

It should have been, but it wasn't.

Because of her raging emotions, there was ice forming between their two hands. She stared in horror, looking like she was going to murder an innocent man for talking to her.

"There are far worse things, child." The man hissed, his bright eyes now smoldering into a dark stormy grey. It seemed like her early assumptions about the man were correct; he clearly was like a storm just waiting to rain down on the rest of the world. Despite, his angered demeanor, he found his hard gaze melting back into its dull default. It appeared that the storm had weathered away, like a small drizzle of rain after a harsh thunderstorm.

"I, uh," Elsa stuttered, still feeling the effects of his subtle mood change. She swiftly took her hand away from him and looked to him in awe. "How are you not afraid? I have magic and—" She gasped as the snow in the man's hand began to melt. With a faint green light, droplets of water cascaded from his fingers and it fell onto the ground. The moment was made even more eerie by the full moon's reflection on the event.

The older gentleman looked at her with bemusement. With ease, he wiped his hands against his course clothing and face the fair-haired girl a bright smile.

"You're not the only with magic." He was still put off by her assumption that was she was doing was harmful since he had seen things that were worse, but it was still amusing to see her react like a young child.

At first, Elsa had been stunned by the man's seemingly silent arrival and she had treated him with suspicion. She still felt apprehension because of his uncharacteristic outburst. Now, she looked to him like a student that wanted to be taught something new. Icy shards of determination shown in her eyes as she held his hand and scanned it quickly. It wasn't a trick, she realized with glee. He had melted the snow like it was nothing! She quietly noted the coldness of his hand, but she somehow knew that it wasn't because of her.

"Teach me," the woman commanded. Although she was a bit bashful at abusing her status as the current queen of Arendelle, she still felt the need to exercise authority. As an afterthought, she inclined her head slightly and murmured a low," Please."

"No."

Elsa's head snapped up as she began to tremble with anger. Shots of ice sprawled all around her form, the lively plants around becoming trapped within ice. A torrent of emotion fled throughout her being, the most obvious of them: anger.

How dare this commoner, this man dare give her high hopes after she had failed so many times at controlling her powers? Who was he to say that he wouldn't teach her? This curious stranger didn't give her chance to prove herself. Without her knowledge, tears pooled down her cheeks, her chest heaving in desperation.

A cool thumb wiped her tears away.

"What are you doing," Elsa mumbled as she tried to remove herself from the man's grip. Even though she showed signs of annoyance, her body still leaned towards his touch. After all, years of separating oneself from the contact of others had taken its toll on the to be Queen of Arendelle. "I didn't ask—"

"I can't help you because you already helped yourself." At the girl's blank face at his statement, the Norwegian continued to speak. As he did so, he removed his hand from her face and pointed to the frost that decorated the area around them. "You already know that negative emotions impact your control of your powers with significant effects. Likewise, positivity improves your control." He paused a moment as he surveyed her figure and his eyes stopped on her sleeves. "While I commend your efforts on concealing your magical prowess," he nodded towards her gloved hands," it will do no good. It will only grow stronger."

"T-then I'll just stop coming outside," Elsa muttered miserably what. What choice did she have if this experienced sorcerer had no other advice for her?

"Your ability to interpret my words astound me," the man remarked with a deadpan expression. "I said nothing about concealing your powers, only that I commend your efforts." He gave her a slight frown, causing guilt to eat at Elsa's insides. Much like her parents, this man had the power of a caring elder to stun her into submission.

"Please explain. I don't want to hurt anyone else," Elsa exclaimed. "Not after—" Her throat closed up and her hands automatically balled into fists.

Her breath stilled.

Her eyes closed.

She would not lose control. She would not. Not in front of this stranger. Not after the suppressed progress she had been making for the past couple of weeks.

"Ah, I remember now, you have a sister," the man whispered with barely veiled remorse. "A love for a sibling can be quite powerful as an incentive…especially if it connects to this 'last time' you were speaking of." He placed a hand on her frigid shoulders, a look of contemplation on his face. "Did I guess right?"

Elsa was weak and it was showing because of the snot that was threatening to run down her nose or the fact that she knew that her nose must have been as red as the roaring fire. She could only nod at his assumption.

"I have a brother too, so I know what it feels like to protect a sibling from dangerous things." Her eyes looked pleadingly into his own eyes, like she was asking him for that piece of information to be true. She wanted to know that she wasn't being pitied, that the man beside her was actually trying to comfort her through past experience, not because she was begging for charity. Lukas allowed her some time to absorb his moment of weakness into memory, fully knowing that she needed strength after her ordeal.

"Am I?" She wiped her nose on her sleeve, fully aware that royals did not leave their body's expectations on their garments, but she did it anyways. Something told her that this stranger could care less about etiquette. The fair-haired girl felt like she could show him her vulnerable—especially after his show of emotion. "Am I dangerous," she elaborated.

Instead of answering her right away, the man retreated back into the range of the fire, fully aware that the queen must think him rude for 'abandoning' the conversation. He sat himself down and pointed at the roaring fire with a purposeful air.

"What are candles meant to do?"

Despite her need for an answer to her question, Elsa decided to oblige.

"They shed light for the rest of the people." The man noted that she was trying to desperately hold herself in check; she didn't want to laugh and offend her host. Discreetly, she gave him another once over, as if checking if he had hit himself in the head while they were talking.

"And are they dangerous?"

"No, unless you handle the flame with recklessness," she answered honestly.

"Exactly. Like your powers, other people must tend to the flame of a candle or it will wither away. Likewise, if you smother the flame, shield it from others' eyes by a bucket, it will only catch fire. There is both danger and practically with both fire and ice. Wind and Earth. Beauty and ugliness. You see Elsa," he continued smoothly, " you have the tools and the talent to control your powers. In other words, you don't need help."

"No!" Shaking her head, she grasped the man's hand and held it, the symptoms of frost coating their fingers a sign of Elsa's barely controlled hopelessness. "You don't understand, I hit my sister once! I can't let that happen again! I—I just can't!" She fell on her knees, ripping their hands apart as she grasped her hair from her head and pulled. She pulled and pulled, fully aware that the man was holding her against him, a lullaby of old Norse being sung into her ear. She trembled and she sobbed, feeling the ice within her break. Without her realizing it, the hushes began to slow and she hesitantly slumped against him.

The man, so old, so timeless, closed his eyes as he sheltered the young ice mage with his body. Although her body temperature was unhealthily low, she was still looking healthy and thriving under these severe conditions. With gentleness that one could only associate with experienced fathers, he rubbed circles into her back and he brushed strands of wayward hair away from her face. It wouldn't do for a lady of any caste to look like a spinster.

"It's beautiful, you know?"

Elsa slowly pulled herself away from the man's chest as a disbelieving look made its way on her features.

"What is?" However, as she said so her, her head swiveled around, a look of utter horror crossing her features. Everywhere, in a twenty-feet radius, there was snow and frost everywhere. There seemed to be snowflakes falling in the sky as well. "I—I didn't… this? This—"

Lukas shushed her. "Magic is an ability that you can inherit, hone, and use for your or others' convenience. Only you can choose how to cultivate your powers."

"Lukas, how do you know so much about magic?"

Lukas gave pause, analyzing the woman before him. She seemed trustworthy, but it had been many years since her family had contacted him, their homeland. He doubted that her family had told stories of nations and what not. So, he decided to tell her something else.

The man gave her a silent, appraising look.

"We all have past regrets. Some were righted by time, others you can achieve by doing yourself."

"I've tried letting time do all the work," Elsa pleaded despairingly. "The only thing I can do to make things right is to stay away from other people!"

The man sighed and shook his head.

"Haven't you thought of achieving the solution of your own idea?" Elsa fell silent and Lukas inwardly cursed himself for acting so cold to a girl that had been treated like a leper for what appears to be most of her life. "Never mind, we'll share the tent for tonight…and tomorrow, we'll talk about your problem."

She nodded, climbing in after the stranger. If she hadn't been emotionally bombarded all day, she would have been far more cautious. As it were, she merely collapsed on one side while Lukas made sure that she was firmly blanketed.

Elsa didn't sleep, though.

* * *

"You left without a word that night," Lukas sighed as he fingered his important attire's hem disinterestedly. He hated dressing up in such finery. While the occasion for today more than merited the need for gaudy apparel, it was simply not his style. "I can't say I blame you, after hearing all the events that occurred during that night, but it would have been nice to know that you were safe. If the queen's hurt, then that automatically means the person closest to her would be accused of treason."

"If you remember, Lukas," Elsa whispered, as she tried to direct eavesdroppers from listening in on their conversation," I was distraught and I felt the need to let things go." The queen was wearing a light blue ensemble, akin to her outfit during the winter, but it differed from her previous clothing choice in that it was far more conservative and it lacked a cape. It didn't matter; it was bit of a pain to drag around, no matter how light it was.

The man gave out a derisive snort, taking care not to completely look insane in front of the guests that just happened to hang onto their words like flies on honey.

"I passed by your castle when I decided to skip Arendelle and head off towards another village." He gave her a small smile; he may have been annoyed that he was left behind like a sack of bricks, but he understood her situation intimately. "The ice creature was a nice touch. I knew that you could control your powers if you put your mind into it."

"Thank you," she answered primly. Eyes cast down; she took one of his hands and held it. "I am completely sorry for acting so rude and out of place," she apologized.

There was a moment of silence before Lukas patted her hand gently, causing her to look up at him in relief.

"You might have run away from the problem, but you did the right thing in the end."

"That I did." All of a sudden, she gave him a look that spoke volumes about the next thought that was taking up space in her mind. "Now that I apologized, can you please tell me why I have to address you as Norway?"

Lukas gave a small chuckle as he felt her grip on her hand grow stronger, the imminence of icy filled doom filing his mind.

"Wouldn't you rather be with your sister, coaching her on what to say at the alter?"

* * *

Basically, this is what I think actually happened after the coronation. There is no way that Elsa would have spent only a few minutes walking up a mountain and then deciding to let go of her life just like that. Teenagers maybe, but I think she needed to talk to someone else. That, and I wanted Norway to meet Elsa in a very unorthodox way.

I also apologize if I messed up the characters' personalities. I think Norway would be less emotionally distant if he's dealing with one of his own citizens and Elsa...its my first time writing her. I hope that you guys enjoy!


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